Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Leith John Paris Warner was born on the 30th of August 1913 in Kent Town, South Australia with the family then moving to Croydon, South Australia. He was the first-born son to Richard Clayton Hudson Warner and Walburg Muir Paris. His parents married on the 2nd of June 1909 in St Pauls Cathedral. His name is Scottish from the port district near the top of Edinburgh where the Paris side of his family came from. Leith was the eldest to his younger brother Angus Jamieson Warner and younger sister Walburg Warner. Leith’s father worked as a hairdresser and served in both World Wars as a medical officer while his mother stayed at home looking after her family. Leith was educated at Port Elliot Primary School and Strathalbyn High School. He was described by friends as a loveable character and a loyal friend and was easy to have a good relationship with. His records at school however have not been found. Leith met his wife Launa in Broken Hill and a brief time later moved to Tasmania and married her. Prior to joining the RAAF,  Leith was working as a bootmaker.

Leith decided to join the Royal Australian Air Force (R.A.A.F) on the 11th of October 1941. After completing his training course, Leith signed up and gained the position for the No. 619 R.A.A.F Squadron which consisted of eleven men for the specific plane which he flew. His squadron flew the Lancaster Bomber from their bases in Lincolnshire England.

Leith and his fellow crewmen served with the Royal Air Force for this specific mission and were deported into Lincolnshire to fight against the Germans. Their first mission was on the 11th of June 1943 when 12 Lancaster Bombers were sent to bomb targets in Düsseldorf with their last mission on the 25th of April 1944 where they tried to bomb SS barracks at Berchtesgaden. Their last operational mission was flown a day later, when two Lancaster Bombers laid mines in the Oslo Fjord near Horten, Norway. The squadron then executed Operation Exodus where they ferried 75,000 ex-prisoners of war back to the United Kingdom from Belgium. This required a significant amount of courage and perseverance from Leith as he was fighting for England and really didn’t know what to expect before each mission.

Leith sent and received postcards which I was unable to find from his mother and sister back home also when he was at war. His sister baked fruit cakes and sent them to London for him. On the postcards he sent he wrote in very broad terms about ‘the Gerry’s’ which is assumed as a reference to the Germans. He also mentioned that the return journey was always dangerous as the English were not very good at identifying their own aircraft and often shot at each other as they flew back home. When Leith’s squadron completed their mission, there was a profound sense of pride among the squadron and their families. It was said that without Leith’s leadership and courage some aspects of the mission wouldn’t have been completed. He felt a great honour for the first time in his life as he completed a mission that meant so much to so many families in Europe. The Governor-General from Australia, Sir Alexander Hore-Ruthven requested that the members of the No. 619 R.A.A.F Squadron would receive the Distinguished Flying Cross presented by King George the 6th on the 16th of March -1945. This exciting news spread quickly around the state with the help of a newspaper article as shown about the pilot from Croydon awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his “...keenness and efficiency…” which was “… responsible for the success of his crew.” His name even appeared in the London Gazette for the Distinguished Flying Cross Recipients.

Sadly, Leith’s life after war wasn’t as spectacular and note-worthy as his war years. Upon his return from the war, he had no permanent job, or housing and struggled to make ends meet. Fortunately, after a few discussions about his payments the Australian Government hired retired service people for jobs including raising and lowering the flag which he obtained. This provided Leith with a small income to afford enough food and hot water to live on. During these years he didn’t see his family for a substantial portion of his life after the war as his time was spent travelling the country looking for employment to seek out a living. There has been quite a lot of speculation amongst family members about what Leith did in the different states but what the family know for certain is that he was very lost after the war and didn’t know his place in society and found life quite difficult.

He found some work in Mossman, Queensland logging trees. He suffered an injury by either falling from a tree or a tree falling on his leg. He had to have needles stuck in his leg to heal it, but the hospital records have not been found. Leith loved his family very much even though he didn’t see them very often. Leith sadly also got into some trouble with the police in the post-war years as he took photos of people for special occasions but never actually gave them the photos. As he was a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, he received a reduced sentence.

Later in life he created his own fishing charter business which took people along South Australian shores. He once told my Grandfather that he would take him on his boat one day, but my Grandfather is still waiting! He got back together with his wife after a long period of separation. It was said that whenever Leith was asked about his life by his nephews, he would always have a sparkle in his eye when talking about it.

He was awarded five military medals during his lifetime including the Distinguished Flying Cross. Indeed, Leith was a war hero, a beacon of courage and resilience. However, the trials Leith felt after his war journey weighed him down tremendously. Like many war veterans, he grappled with the daunting task of reintegrating into society after the war. The hardships that he was feeling resonated with his war-torn years that had defined him as a hero. Yet, through it all, Leith remained a symbol of perseverance, navigating the tumultuous years of veteran life with unwavering courage.

Sadly, though at the age of eighty-one, Leith John Paris Warner passed away on the 5th of December 1994 at OB Flat which is near Mount Gambier. His ashes were sprinkled over his wife’s unmarked gravesite at Centennial Park.